Lizzie for Free : a yogi's blog
The Free State of LizArchive for ashtanga yoga
The Yoga Body
Several years ago I was having lunch with a friend discussing our dreams, our goals and our passions. “What I really want to do is practice yoga all the time, and maybe some day even teach yoga”, I said, admitting it out loud for the first time.
“Yea, but don’t you have to be thin to do that?”, he replied.
And such is the way of the mind – to judge, to condition, to expect things to be a certain way based on what we see in the media, read about in books, or rationalize based on experience (or lack thereof). Yogis are thin, some people think, because to practice yoga one has to be flexible, health conscious, active and therefore healthy. On and on go the preconceived ideas about what it takes to be a yoga teacher.
It’s true, that some yoga teachers are svelt, flexible and in pristine physical condition, but that in itself doesn’t make someone evolved in their practice or teaching (though it can certainly help when it comes to practicing asana). While not all yoga teachers have been blessed with a genetic gene pool that makes the practice of yoga easy or natural, the empathy developed from practicing in a body that is not naturally flexible or ‘perfect’ can be a teacher’s great gift to their students; it may even contribute to one’s compassion and ability to teach.
When the asana practice is easy, what can one learn from the practice? How does a human pretzel relate to students who find certain postures challenging or even painful?
The philosophy of yoga says that we have been born into our families and our bodies for a reason based on our samskaras (past karmic imprints). This implies that we are not in complete control of our metabolic makeup, our shape, or even our overall health. Yoga philosophy says that what happened many lifetimes ago may just be germinating karmically in this lifetime, so we should take it in stride, do all that we can to treat others with kindness and compassion, and practice our sadhana. The rebirthing process into a human body is a gift – it’s an opportunity to work out our past karmic seeds and evolve, and perhaps even attain enlightenment in this lifetime.
Many yoga teachers have come to teach due to their love of yoga and the positive changes they have experienced in their own lives as a result of their practice. This implies that they had something that drew them to the practice to begin with, some type of suffering or seeking within. Through the teaching of asana, however, some yogis get sidetracked from their sadhana, trying so hard to fit into the image of what they think they should be as a ‘yogi’ that they become busy with ‘doing yoga’ instead of ‘being’ in their practice. These teachers may look and act the part, but observe more closely and you may become aware: of the ‘vegan teacher’ who is passionate about causing less harm to four-legged beings, yet rude and dispassionate towards human-beings; the ‘sadhu teacher’ who looks and acts the part of a guru yet is so caught up in being a teacher that they don’t know how to be a student; the ‘flexible teacher’ who is so busy with demonstrating the postures to their students that they are practicing the postures inaccurately and actually harming themselves. These observations are not made with the intention to judge, but rather, to remember that things are never what they seem, and at the end of the day, we are all doing the best we can in our human-ness. No one is perfect, there is no such a thing.
I was asked by a complete stranger (who happens to be a yoga teacher) recently if I was pregnant. I explained to her that while I have a son, I’m not currently pregnant. I added that I have a digestive disease that I’ve had since I was three that makes my belly appear bloated. “Yea, you have baby belly alright”, she said, ignoring my previous comment. “Pilates could really help that, and so could some yoga”. I decided not to tell her that I practice pilates twice a week, have been practicing yoga for 15 years. In truth, my ego was a knocked down a couple of notches, but it was a great reminder that we never really know what is going on with people, regardless of what we see on the outside. Not everyone who appears overweight or unhealthy is so because of their diet or their lifestyle, and a yoga teacher who asks a complete stranger if they are pregnant may not know enough to realize that not all people are created with a flat tummy.
My belief is that a yoga body is a body of grace, awareness, energy and confidence. Whether tall or short, svelt or round, a yogi is one who is interested in forging a positive relationship with one’s whole self. This means no longer identifying with the positive and negative aspects of one’s being, but rather, ceasing to view oneself with positive or negative aspects-accepting both in equal measure, in whole-ness. From the study of the yamas and niyamas, a yogis walks with grace and integrity; from the asana and pranayama practice, a yogi has a vibrant cultivation of positive energy. By practicing pratyahara, dharana, and later, dhyana, confidence flows. These are attributes I aspire to in my yoga body. What do you seek from your practice?
Juice with Norman
Last week I experienced my first Yin Yoga class with Norman Blair which I found extremely relaxing and meditative. In Yin Yoga each posture is held for 5 minutes, giving the student plenty of time to surrender to any mental attachments or bodily discomfort. I have to admit, I came to class particularly tired due to lack of sleep, but I got the feeling that I was able to go deep (dare I say nod off?) into each posture before being pulled out by Norman’s relaxing voice.
After class I caught up with Norman for a juice and a chat.
FL (That’s me!): Norman, you mentioned stillness many times throughout the class today, yet the postures we’re constantly shifting and changing form within them. Were you using stillness as a metaphor for the mind?
NB: Yes, for the mind, and for life really. Yin yoga is about doing less. While there is constant subtle movement in the body in terms of energy and fluids, the aim is to stay and hold into physical stillness, not fidgeting, not thinking about escaping from the posture. Like when we have difficult situations in life. I know a woman who is getting over a loss of a loved one and she told me she needs to take on more work to get really busy to distract herself, and I was like, no! Stay with your loss for a bit and see what comes up.
I’m a hyper kind of person, I come from an energetic background and have experienced a lot, but my life is shifting now. I used to have a full-on Ashtanga practice but now I realize some of the things in the Ashtanga system no longer work for my body. Yin has helped me to get freer and take it easy.
FL: How did your yoga path begin?
NB: Well, looking at where I came from it’s actually funny that I teach. When I first started a friend took me and she said she never saw anyone as stiff and inflexible as me taking a yoga class. I took a beginners class for several weeks but I stopped going. Then in the summer of ’93 a woman I knew named Oz was doing the Iyengar teacher training and needed a group to teach. It was a small group in her front living room, it was great taking classes with her we had lots of attention, very personal. In the mid-nineties she went to Crete with Derek and Radha. So then she started teaching Ashtanga, and I followed her. I took classes with her until ’99. So first it was Iyengar, then Ashtanga; now she teaches Shadow. We all influence each other. That’s how I became vegetarian too, by being exposed to others.
FL: So, you’re a vegetarian – what role do you think this plays in the practice?
NB: Well, I think for some people it is healthy, and like most people I’ve moved in and out of various dietary practices. I have dairy now, I just love ice cream way too much. The yamas and niyamas set guidelines for us as practitioners, but I don’t think anyone can dictate what is good for everybody – we’re all different and work with what we have. At the end of the day, we should question the practices and make sure what we’re doing is really about living our lives as better human beings, being conscious of the consequences of our actions.
FL: When did you start teaching?
NB: I started teaching Autumn 2001 – Asthanga and general yoga. I went straight into teaching fulltime. I gave myself 6 months to see if I could financially manage and if I would enjoy it. Luckily I was well connected and at that time there were more teachers than classes. Now it’s the otherway around. But it’s not like you’re a footballer, you can keep getting better and better as a teacher. At 70 you could be a far better teacher than at 50 with a lot more insight and ability to inspire your students. For the most part I say to new teachers, don’t give up your day job. If you’re in London and connected, you might make it, but London is hard. It’s easier outside London.
FL: How long do you think one should practice before becoming a teacher?
NB: How do you define practice? I was practicing for 8 years, but I didn’t have a meditation practice when I started teaching. I would say in general 5-8 years. My joke is if you’re under 30 or come from a dance background you shouldn’t teach yoga. Of course that’s way too simplistic, but you get the point. We can learn so much about ill health, fragility and the life process with age and with working through an inflexible or weak body as a starting point. That authenticity needs to be brought to teaching. I’m a mentor on the yoga campus teacher training. Some people have only been practicing a few years and can get up into certain postures like handstand, but it’s a shallow practice. It lacks depth, and so will their teaching. Of course, some young teachers are excellent but I would guess that’s the exception. I’d also recommend psychotherapy for all yoga teachers to sort out things that come up in teaching and in the practice.
So many things in yoga are dictated by highly flexible people. I’ve heard teachers say that using blocks isn’t yoga and other kind of box-like thinking. For me teaching is more about having integrity, looking at how we can help each other in the practice and being more relaxed about defining what is and what isn’t.
FL: What is your daily practice like now?
NB: On a good day, 40 minutes of seated meditation, some form of asana practice whether it’s Ashtanga (primary, plus the second series, a third or half way through) or Yin Yoga. Some days it’s quite focused, some days it’s not. Ideally in a week I’d do Ashtanga 3-4 times, but I’ve been busy lately so it becomes more like 2-3 times, I go to a dogmatic studio for Asthanga. I don’t certain things anymore, I damaged my knee from dropbacks and so I ease off where I know it’s not good for me.
FL: Are there any types of yoga that you’ve tried and didn’t like?
NB: Bikram. I wouldn’t go to another Bikram class. I went to this class in Berkely with around 80 sweaty people in the room with a tiny teacher in some kind of strapless bikini muscling us through the postures like bootcamp. But then, I know someone else who is a homeopath who has been practicing yoga for years and only does Bikram and loves it. There’s no right or wrong since everyone is different. Just like I’d never say vegetarianism or ashtanga is for everyone. We all need something different.
FL: Who are your most influential teachers?
NB: I’m into loyalty and longevity. I think when you have a teacher, go the distance. Its like if you you change your boyfriend or girlfriend every 6 months you only skim the surface of that relationship. I’ve been practicing with Hamish since ’99, and I’ve had my ups and downs with him. I’m not an Ashtanga dogmatist, but I love the Asthanga system.
Sarah Powers, Richard Freeman and Judith Lasater have been hugely influential as well.
FL: Who do you practice with here in London?
NB: Consistently I go to Hamish Hendry and Alaric Newcombe. In the past, Alexa Harris at the Life Centre and Leela Miller. It’s so important to practice.
Norman has been practicing yoga for 17 years and teaching full time since 2001. He currently teaches at various locations across London, and will be on Indaba Yoga Studio’s faculty. For more information about Norman, check out his website.
